Our View: Strong leader opens door for input, learning

Forrest protest leader Joshua Crutchfield, left introduces MTSU President Sidney McPhee, center, to speak on the name of the Forrest building at the end of a march and rally, on Thursday, August 27, 2015, to protest the name of the ROTC building. (Photo: HELEN COMER/DNJ)Buy Photo

We were reminded of the quote from the 2000 film “Remember the Titans” upon hearing the speech of University of Missouri system’s president Tim Wolfe as he announced his resignation Monday.

“I take full responsibility for this frustration, and I take full responsibility for the inaction that has occurred,” Wolfe said. The chancellor of the Columbia, Mo., campus also resigned Monday amid protests and allegations of culture of rampant racism at the university.

We think University of Missouri officials would do well to look at the leadership Middle Tennessee State University President Sidney McPhee has demonstrated in the face of recent student protests concerning the name of the school’s ROTC building.

Forrest Hall bears the name of the Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, known for his tactical battlefield skills and for leading a successful 1862 raid that captured more than 1,000 Union troops and freed local residents in Murfreesboro. He also reportedly served as the first grand wizard for the Ku Klux Klan after the war before eventually renouncing his ties to the organization.

Occasional protests have surfaced through the years since MTSU’s ROTC building was dedicated as Nathan Bedford Forrest Hall in 1958. Calls to do away with the symbol of the Confederacy returned after the June 17 mass shootings during a prayer meeting this year at an African-American church in Charleston.

While Mizzou’s student body accused Wolfe of enabling an atmosphere of racism, McPhee attended a name-change rally at Forrest Hall earlier in the school year. There, amid the peaceful protesters, he announced he would form a panel to study the possibility of a name change.

His response was neither knee jerk nor dismissive.

He named global studies professor Derek Frisby to chair a task force comprised of students, faculty and community representatives.

“I'm confident that such a broad range of perspectives will produce a thoughtful recommendation," McPhee said at the first meeting of the task force on Thursday at the Student Union.

McPhee tasked the panel to recommend by April 2016 whether to change the name of Forrest Hall, retain the name "with added historical perspective" or keep the name as is.

Members of the task force agreed to holding public-input meetings on and off MTSU's campus, so students and community members could voice their thoughts about the issue. Frisby said he will attempt to set the first session for early December.

A second public meeting will be set up after students return from winter break in January.

After the input meetings, Frisby suggested the committee begin open deliberations on the recommendation it will make to McPhee.

If the task force and McPhee agree to a name change, the Tennessee Board of Regents and the state Historical Commission would have to approve the decision.

Regardless of what decision is ultimately made concerning the ROTC building name, we believe McPhee has addressed the issue with an openness and respect for all sides that reflects well on his presidency.

His task force is a symbol of diversity, transparency and maturity. It is also an opportunity for all involved to learn.

As committee member and history professor Mark Doyle pointed out, the task force provides “a great teaching opportunity.

“This is a university. We should be talking about these things.”

And that, University of Missouri officials, is how it’s done.

News director Sandee Suitt wrote this editorial on behalf of The Daily News Journal Editorial Council. Email her at suitt@dnj.com or call 615-278-5160. The Editorial Council meets at noon Tuesdays in The DNJ conference room on the fourth floor of the SunTrust Building, 201 E. Main St., Murfreesboro. The meetings are open to the public.